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October 17, 2024
Mexico Phosphate Case Shines Light On 3rd-Party Funding
A U.S. deep ocean exploration company's announcement last month that most, if not all, of a $37 million award it won against Mexico would go toward satisfying its obligations to its third-party funder has helped to fuel questions about whether such funding arrangements belong in investor-state arbitration.
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October 17, 2024
No Fraud In $195M Natural Gas Feud, Court Hears
A Portuguese electricity and gas provider that won a $195 million arbitral award against a Spanish natural gas company has opposed its discovery motion as it looks to vacate the award on fraud claims following their dispute over a liquefied natural gas swap transaction.
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October 17, 2024
DOL, Red States Spar Over Loper Bright Impact On ESG Rule
Conservative-led states suing the U.S. Department of Labor have told a Texas federal court that the end of the Chevron doctrine boosts their bid to end a rule allowing retirement plan advisers to consider environmental, social and governance factors in investment choices, while the DOL argued that it deserves another summary judgment win.
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October 17, 2024
Engineer Wood PLC Faces Contempt Bid Amid Pipeline Spat
A contractor facing claims that it mismanaged the construction of a $22 million Colonial Pipeline Co. fuel terminal in Georgia asked a federal judge Thursday to hold multinational engineering firm John L. Wood PLC in contempt of court for playing "word games" with a recent subpoena.
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October 17, 2024
Supreme Court Signals Skepticism On Staying Federal Rules
A recent string of refusals to block major Biden administration energy and climate change rules suggests that the U.S. Supreme Court is setting limits on its willingness to elbow aside lower courts that are considering challenges to such rules, legal experts say.
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October 17, 2024
FERC Adds Tribal Protections To Transmission Siting Rule
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission unanimously finalized its rule updating how the agency plans to carry out its limited authority over siting transmission lines during its monthly meeting on Thursday.
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October 17, 2024
Infrastructure Co. Owes $2.4M In Arb. Fees In Solar Plant Fight
A federal judge has upheld an award of $2.4 million in fees to a Spanish construction firm in its dispute with an infrastructure company over a failed energy project in the Nevada desert, ruling an arbitration tribunal did not ignore the law in the breach of contract action.
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October 17, 2024
Groups Challenge Utah Permit For Green River Lithium Project
Conservation groups hit the Utah state engineer and an Anson Resources subsidiary with a suit challenging a water permit issued last month for a lithium extraction project along the Green River, the Colorado River's largest tributary.
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October 17, 2024
Jury Says Phillips 66 Owes $605M In Fuel Trade Secrets Fight
A jury in California state court said Wednesday a retailer of low-carbon fuels is owed $604.9 million after finding that Phillips 66 swiped trade secrets relating to data, such as sales information and pricing methods.
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October 17, 2024
Mich. Urges 6th Circ. To Toss Enbridge's Line 5 Countersuit
Michigan's governor has told the Sixth Circuit she and another state official are immune from Enbridge Energy LP's lawsuit over efforts to shut down a natural gas and oil pipeline because the dispute implicates state sovereignty issues that place it beyond federal jurisdiction.
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October 17, 2024
$20B Verizon-Frontier Deal Faces Scrutiny, And Other Rumors
A growing list of Frontier Communications' largest shareholders are concerned about its planned $20 billion takeover by Verizon Communications, and a group of former professional athletes are in talks to buy a stake in the NFL's Buffalo Bills. Here, Law360 breaks down these and other notable rumors from the past week.
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October 17, 2024
Solar Site Settles Conn. AG's Claims Over Social Media Ads
The Connecticut attorney general's office has reached a settlement with EnergyBillCruncher.com to resolve claims that it ran deceptive social media ads falsely claiming that the "government will cover the cost" of solar panel installation and improperly displaying the state seal.
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October 17, 2024
Industrial Pipe Co. Hits Rival, Ex-Exec With Trade Secrets Suit
Industrial pipe manufacturer Atkore International Inc. took one of its former senior-level executives and the rival company he went to work for to North Carolina state court, alleging the former employee sabotaged operations on his way out the door and took valuable trade secrets with him.
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October 17, 2024
States, Industry Urge DC Circ. To Scrap Truck GHG Rule
Dozens of states and industry groups are imploring the D.C. Circuit to pull the plug on a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule setting greenhouse gas emission standards for heavy-duty vehicles, arguing it mandates a transition to electric vehicles that the agency has no authority to push.
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October 16, 2024
Cos. Slam Spain's Bid For DC Circ. Redo Over $395M Suits
Three investment companies have opposed Spain's request for a rehearing in the D.C. Circuit over the appeals court's ruling that district courts have jurisdiction to enforce about $395 million in arbitral awards issued against the country after it rolled back economic incentives for renewable energy projects.
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October 16, 2024
Gatos Silver Investor Deal Gets Final OK, Attys Score $6M Fee
Attorneys from Bleichmar Fonti & Auld LLP, Wheeler Trigg O'Donnell LLP and The Schall Law Firm will receive over $6 million after representing investors in a settlement with precious metals company Gatos Silver Inc. over claims the company knowingly overstated expectations about the resources and reserves in its mine in Mexico.
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October 16, 2024
SD Power Co. Agrees To Stormwater Protections At Facilities
A California federal judge has signed off on a consent decree between two conservation groups and the San Diego Gas & Electric Co. to close out a lawsuit over the utility's management of chemically treated wood waste.
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October 16, 2024
ConocoPhillips Targets Hedge Fund Over Del. Citgo Sale
ConocoPhillips has initiated a new lawsuit in Delaware in an attempt to preserve the value of Citgo's indirect parent company, PDV Holding Inc., for an upcoming auction aimed at satisfying Venezuelan debt, as Connecticut hedge fund Gramercy allegedly threatens to undermine the long-awaited Citgo sales process.
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October 16, 2024
11th Circ. Won't Nix OK Of Guatemalan Power Plant Award
The Eleventh Circuit refused Wednesday to vacate an arbitral award issued following a dispute over an ill-fated Guatemalan power plant construction project, rejecting arguments that the tribunal improperly turned a blind eye to alleged corruption underlying the project.
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October 16, 2024
Amec Unit Wants 'Vexatious' Biofuel Plant Suit Tossed
Energy construction giant Amec Foster Wheeler and one of its units called on a Georgia federal judge to throw out a lawsuit alleging it misled a Peach State power company about the quality of work on two biofuel plants, arguing the company's complaint violates the claim-splitting doctrine and lacks sufficient factual allegations.
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October 16, 2024
NC Panel Won't Reignite Duke Energy Case Over House Fire
A split panel of the North Carolina Court of Appeals declined to revive a liability suit brought against Duke Energy Corp. and a contractor it hired to install new meters at its customers' homes after one of those contractors allegedly caused a bed to catch fire leading to $130,000 in damage.
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October 16, 2024
Mich. Landfill Says Manhattan Project Waste A National Issue
A Michigan dump site on Tuesday said a dispute over whether it can accept radioactive material from the first atomic bomb project is a matter of national concern, arguing attempts by a group of surrounding communities in state court to block it from accepting the waste interferes with a federal waste program.
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October 16, 2024
Feds Pan ComEd Four's Effort To Avoid Convictions
Prosecutors urged an Illinois federal judge Wednesday to reject an acquittal bid brought by Commonwealth Edison's former CEO and three co-defendants in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling narrowing the scope of federal bribery law, arguing that not only is their motion untimely, but the government proved quid pro quo bribery at trial last year.
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October 16, 2024
Brazilian Electricity Biz Seeks US Ch. 15 Recognition
Light SA, parent to a major Brazilian electrical utility, has asked a Texas bankruptcy judge to grant U.S. recognition of its foreign insolvency proceedings, saying a Brazilian court had approved a restructuring plan for the company to deal with roughly $2 billion in debt that has high creditor support.
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October 16, 2024
EPA Defends Rejection Of Smog Rule Reconsideration Pleas
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency told the D.C. Circuit it reasonably rejected petitions by U.S. Steel Corp. and Hybar LLC to reconsider its so-called Good Neighbor Plan to curb cross-state ozone pollution after courts stayed the rule for some affected states.
Expert Analysis
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Amid SEC Rule Limbo, US Cos. Subject To ESG Regs In EU
Though the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is facing legal challenges to its climate-disclosure rulemaking, the implementation of the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive in the European Union will force U.S. companies to comply with exactly the kinds of ESG disclosures that are not yet mandated in the U.S., say attorneys at Squire Patton.
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How Law Firms Can Avoid 'Collaboration Drag'
Law firm decision making can be stifled by “collaboration drag” — characterized by too many pointless meetings, too much peer feedback and too little dissent — but a few strategies can help stakeholders improve decision-making processes and build consensus, says Steve Groom at Miles Mediation.
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Opinion
Litigation Funding Disclosure Key To Open, Impartial Process
Blanket investor and funding agreement disclosures should be required in all civil cases where the investor has a financial interest in the outcome in order to address issues ranging from potential conflicts of interest to national security concerns, says Bob Goodlatte, former U.S. House Representative for Virginia.
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The Ethics of Using Generative AI In Environmental Law
The rapid emergence of generative artificial intelligence tools is challenging environmental lawyers, consultants and government agencies to determine when and how these tools can be responsibly, ethically and productively integrated into their practices to streamline research, predictive analytics and regulatory compliance, say Ahlia Bethea and Pamela Esterman at Sive Paget.
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Carbon Offset Case A Win For CFTC Enviro Fraud Task Force
An Illinois federal court's decision in Commodity Futures Trading Commission v. Ikkurty — earning the CFTC a sizeable monetary award that will likely incentivize similar enforcement pursuit — shows the impact of the commission's Environmental Fraud Task Force, say attorneys at Steptoe.
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What NFL Draft Picks Have In Common With Lateral Law Hires
Nearly half of law firm lateral hires leave within a few years — a failure rate that is strikingly similar to the performance of NFL quarterbacks drafted in the first round — in part because evaluators focus too heavily on quantifiable metrics and not enough on a prospect's character traits, says Howard Rosenberg at Baretz+Brunelle.
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DC Circ. Int'l Arb. Ruling Leaves Award Holders In Legal Limbo
In NextEra v. Spain, the D.C. Circuit recently ruled that district courts could enforce arbitral awards in energy investors' decadelong dispute with Spain, suggesting award holders could succeed in U.S. courts, but also that foreign sovereigns could render any such victories economically meaningless, says Jeff Newton at Omni Bridgeway.
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Replacing The Stigma Of Menopause With Law Firm Support
A large proportion of the workforce is forced to pull the brakes on their career aspirations because of the taboo surrounding menopause and a lack of consistent support, but law firms can initiate the cultural shift needed by formulating thoughtful workplace policies, says Barbara Hamilton-Bruce at Simmons & Simmons.
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Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: August Lessons
In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy considers certification cases touching on classwide evidence of injury from debt collection practices, defining coupon settlements under the Class Action Fairness Act, proper approaches for evaluating attorney fee awards in class action settlements, and more.
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Planning Law Firm Content Calendars: What, When, Where
During the slower month of August, law firms should begin working on their 2025 content calendars, planning out a content creation and distribution framework that aligns with the firm’s objectives and maintains audience engagement throughout the year, says Jessica Kaplan at Legally Penned.
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Series
Playing Golf Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Golf can positively affect your personal and professional life well beyond the final putt, and it’s helped enrich my legal practice by improving my ability to build lasting relationships, study and apply the rules, face adversity with grace, and maintain my mental and physical well-being, says Adam Kelly at Venable.
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Brownfield Questions Surround IRS Tax Credit Bonus
Though the IRS has published guidance regarding the Inflation Reduction Act's 10% adder for tax credits generated by renewable energy projects constructed on brownfield sites, considerable guesswork remains as potential implications seem contrary to IRS intentions, say Megan Caldwell and Jon Micah Goeller at Husch Blackwell.
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Law Firms Should Move From Reactive To Proactive Marketing
Most law firm marketing and business development teams operate in silos, leading to an ad hoc, reactive approach, but shifting to a culture of proactive planning — beginning with comprehensive campaigns — can help firms effectively execute their broader business strategy, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.
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Energy And AI: Key Issues And Future Challenges
Artificial intelligence promises new technical advantages for the energy industry, but it is also responsible for vast, and growing, energy consumption — so the future of AI and energy will require balancing technological advancement with regulatory oversight, environmental responsibility and infrastructure development, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
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Opinion
The Big Issues A BigLaw Associates' Union Could Address
A BigLaw associates’ union could address a number of issues that have the potential to meaningfully improve working conditions, diversity and attorney well-being — from restructured billable hour requirements to origination credit allocation, return-to-office mandates and more, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.